Underage Drinking

This year's General Assembly session is well under way in Annapolis, and once again we face a new threat to hospitality jobs throughout our state. Recently, legislation was introduced that would raise alcohol taxes by more than 790 percent. Supporters say it is just a "dime a drink," but a tax on alcohol is more than a tax on just one drink: It's a direct attack on the hospitality industry, and — according to an economic impact analysis of the industry developed for our company by John Dunham and Associates — it could cost more than 8,000 jobs.

A 16-year-old caught drinking beer in a North Laurel restaurant has cost Wild Buffalo Grill owner Maria Marek a $500 fine and a six-day license suspension on two consecutive weekends starting Friday, according to a decision by the Howard County Alcoholic Beverage Association. Howard police Detective Mark Baxter told the board that officers found the youth drinking inside the restaurant the night of Nov. 12. John Curtis, the manager and Marek's brother-in-law, told them a regular patron, age 26, had bought a "bucket" of five beers, and the youth took one, police said.

Police wanted criminal charges filed against a woman who they believed supplied alcohol to underage drinkers at her Ellicott City home the night last year that 17-year-old Steven Dankos was killed in a drunken-driving accident, according to prosecutors. A Howard County District Court commissioner refused, and Linda Stapf was given a citation instead. That procedural dispute led to prosecutors' agreeing Wednesday in Howard County District Court to Judge Mary C. Reese's putting Stapf's case on the inactive docket, where it will stay as long as Stapf attends a victim impact panel hosted by Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

The Thirsty Turtle bar has been open for three years, but that's long enough to develop a reputation and following among University of Maryland students. The Turtle, as students call it, is known for its packed dance floor, loud music, sticky floors, cheap drinks and, as the bar has been charged, often lax carding at the door. "They call it the freshman bar," said Brian Hearn, 21, a senior communications major. "It was a joke getting in there. I guess it still is. " Last week, police were called to a fight-turned-stabbing on U.S. 1, involving five intoxicated men who had been kicked out of the College Park bar. Three of the victims were underage UM students.

A 19-year-old Naval Academy midshipman was cited for underage drinking at downtown Annapolis bar during an enforcement sweep last week, police said Tuesday. Sara James Markwith, a Washington state resident attending the military college, left her seat at the Acme Bar & Grill when police and other city inspectors entered the bar in the 100 block of Main St., police said. Maj. Scott Baker said officers "had to coax her out of the bathroom. " She gave police an incorrect birthdate, and she became argumentative with officers, but later told police she slipped in through a back door when someone else was returning inside.

Notre Dame men's basketball coach Mike Brey will wait to deal with the arrests of Eric Atkins (Mount St. Joseph) and Tim Abromaitis on charges of underage drinking. "It's handled downtown. It's handled by Student Affairs and then the old coach will handle it," Brey said Tuesday. Atkins, an incoming freshman, and Abromaitis, the Irish's second leading scorer last season, were among 44 people arrested Friday night after police responded to a call about a fight and discovered a party, authorities said.

Lacrosse Championships Dixon, Westervelt combine for 4 goals in U.S. rout at worlds Kyle Dixon (Archbishop Spalding) and Drew Westervelt (John Carroll) scored two goals apiece, and the U.S. men's national team coasted to a 19-5 victory over Japan in its pool-play finale at the Federation of International Lacrosse World Championships in Manchester, England. Mike Leveille led the team with three goals and five points, while goalkeeper Adam Fullerton made nine saves in three quarters in relief of Brian Dougherty (Maryland)

The day after Gov. Martin O'Malley's 18-year-old daughter was briefly hospitalized, apparently after drinking alcohol, the first lady called the incident a "teachable moment." "We … encourage all parents and teenagers to be safe this graduation season," Katie Curran O'Malley said in a statement Friday. Tara O'Malley, the second-eldest of the governor's four children, graduated Wednesday from Notre Dame Preparatory School and had been at a celebration Thursday. A Baltimore police officer found her "apparently unconscious" with a friend at the Inner Harbor about 7:30 p.m. She was treated at Harbor Hospital and released that night.

Three Howard County businesses were cited recently for selling alcohol to a 20-year-old volunteer working for the Police Department. According to Howard County police, St. John's Liquors in Ellicott City, All Saints Liquors in Laurel and a 7-Eleven in Ellicott City have been notified that they will be brought before the county's Alcohol Beverage Hearing Board for violations. The test of local establishments took place March 11, police said. The volunteer, whose identity was not disclosed, showed clerks at each establishment his Pennsylvania driver's license, which showed he was underage.

Conventional wisdom in Maryland's State House holds that lawmakers never, ever raise taxes in an election year. The notion is so deeply embedded in the Annapolis political class that it might as well be carved in marble and offered as the official state slogan. Yet abandoning that custom in 2010 would give state legislators an opportunity to strike a blow against alcohol abuse, underage drinking, murder, rape and other acts of violence across Maryland, while simultaneously sparing the public from the worst effects of budget reductions forced by the current economic downturn.